Comforting Embrace (1-Shot)
by RecursiveDestroyer
Summary: Ryou is worried about Bakura and runs off to find him. Some words are exchanged and guess who ends up being the cute one this time around. Tendershipping.


Ryou ran down the deserted street as fast as he could. He pushed himself to go faster as the rain continued to come pouring down from the gray clouded sky above. His soaked sneakers splashed through the puddles and his rain jacket did little to stop the water droplets from chilling his bones. His indifference to the cold wetness was caused by one thought: Finding Bakura.

Bakura hadn't returned to the bar they owned when Melvin did and it was the crazy haired blonde's words that spooked Ryou into finding him. He had asked Melvin where Bakura was and Melvin had responded with, "I thought he was already here." Upon finding that to be false, Melvin cursed loudly and said, "We got separated as the cops pulled up. Our mutual agreement is to always meet up here afterward, but I was sure that he'd get here first." Ryou had then grabbed his coat and took off despite Melvin yelling at him to wait a while longer.

 _Something had to have happened,_ he thought as he tried to match his breathing with his strides. _Bakura is the best thief I know. He couldn't have been caught by the police._ He rounded another corner and finally came upon the building the pair had planned on robbing for weeks now.

Police cops surrounded the building and yellow caution tape was being put up around the cars to create a barrier so any evidence they would find, not that they would, wouldn't be tampered with. Ryou quickly surveyed the backseats of all the squad cars to find that Bakura wasn't in any of them. He felt relieved that he hadn't been caught. No doubt the detectives would be able to pin multiple thefts to him and put him behind bars for a long time. Ryou didn't want to think about how lonely he'd be if that came true.

 _He must be on his way back to the bar if he hasn't arrived since I've been gone,_ Ryou thought with a small huff. _Wanker had me worried for a couple minutes. He's going to get an earful when I get back._ He went to turn around when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a thin red stream running down the side of a nearby building. His attention turned to it immediately as he recognized what the watered down liquid was. Blood was being mixed with the onslaught of rainwater and was pooling enough to overflow down the side of the building.

Ryou quickly changed his course to the roof of that building. He scaled the fire escape with small stumbles as he thought of the worst. _What if Bakura is the one bleeding up there?_ He shook his head free from the thought; he didn't have time to weigh on what could be up there. He needed to find out for himself.

Jumping from the fire escape to the roof, he quickly ducked behind the air conditioning unit that rumbled gently as it worked to keep the building cool. He snuck around the side and upon deeming that side safe, he did it again with another. This time he found three bodies lying unconscious on the flat concrete roof.

He squatted down and stayed still as he looked at them from a distance. None of them had white hair and that made Ryou relax a bit. At least it wasn't Bakura that was bleeding. He approached the three of them cautiously, for he didn't know whether or not they were wounded or just unconscious junkies who had too much of their preferred drug. Turned out it was the former of the two.

Each man had large puncture wounds on their stomachs and the sight alone was enough to make Ryou gag. Sure, he lived with Bakura and seeing him devour steak was pretty raunchy but this far surpassed that. Blood was pooled around them from the slowly bleeding gut wounds. It was streaked towards the edge of the roof where Ryou knew it dripped down to the ground. Their clothes were soaked and Ryou bet it was all blood and not water. He wondered who would've done such a thing when a crashing sound came from the fourth side of the unit.

His head spun around swiftly and he froze in his crouched position. A string of familiar sounding curses drifted over and then some more shuffling could be heard. _Could it be…?_ Ryou thought in disbelief. He quickly sneaked over to peek around the corner and he let out a sigh of relief. Bakura sat hunched against the unit.

Ryou noticed that his breathing was heavy and irregular and that he had a hand clamped around his right bicep. His clothes weren't bloody from what he could see but they too were soaked through completely. His teeth were gritted as if he were in pain and his dark brown, nearly black, eyes seemed to glare at something that wasn't there.

"Bakura?" Ryou called softly from the shadows. Bakura's head whipped towards his direction but a groan escaped his lips when words should have. He squeezed his eyes in pain.

"That you, Ryou?" He spoke huskily after a couple seconds. It was hard to breathe and therefore it was hard to speak. Bakura heard the soft splats of wet shoes hitting the ground before a small hand caressed his head. He instinctively leaned into the familiar warm touch.

"I'm right here, Bakura," Ryou whispered softly as he held Bakura close to his chest. "I'll call Melvin and tell him where we are. The police will see that trail of blood soon enough so we have to get out of here." He proceeded to get out his phone and speed dialed Melvin. The pick up was nearly instantly and it was obvious that he was worried about Bakura. Ryou told him where they were and he had heard Melvin's motorcycle revving up before the line got cut.

Bakura didn't say anything as the phone was slipped back into Ryou's pocket. He knew he should probably say something but for once he felt like Ryou needed to speak first. The silence that blanketed them was only interrupted by the occasional cop siren blaring from below and from the constant pitter-patter of the rain. Ryou's body was warm from where he leaned against it and he held himself back from tucking his head closer to Ryou's neck. It seemed like forever had passed when Ryou finally spoke.

"You had me worried when Melvin came back without you," he said quietly as if confessing something dark. "I thought of the worst and that only scared me more." Bakura's eyes were shut as he listened and Ryou watched him carefully. "Seeing those men, I was relieved to find none of them were you." His voice cracked halfway through the sentence, and Bakura opened his eyes to see Ryou crying quietly. Guilt shot through him.

"I didn't mean to kill them, Ryou," Bakura replied back quickly. It was a pain to keep talking when he could practically feel the poison spreading throughout his body but he continued anyway. "I didn't mean to break our promise."

Ryou sniffled pathetically and hugged Bakura closer. "I know they attacked you first, so I get it. I forgive you for attacking them. They'll live through the wounds if they are found in time." Bakura weakly raised an eyebrow at this.

"Then why are you crying, Ryou?" Bakura wondered for a long second before it dawned on him. "I'm sorry for scaring you." Ryou shook his head. The long white locks fell heavily around his head from the rain.

"I'm just so glad that you're okay," Ryou whispered and buried his head into Bakura's soaked hair.

Bakura scoffed. "I wouldn't call it 'okay.' My arm and head are bloody killing me right now."

"Melvin's on his way so we'll get you to a hospital soon." Bakura groaned in response.

"I hate hospitals," he grumbled yet a sharp pain shooting up his arm caused him to grit his teeth and hold in a groan.

"Yes, yes," Ryou said dismissively. "But you're only down and out now because of that cut. Had to be a poisoned blade." An incoherent grumble came from Bakura again and Ryou knew he was right.

"You're too bloody observant." Ryou chuckled gently and the vibration eased some of the pain.

"You taught me to be observant when you dragged me on all of those heists when I was younger. So, it's your own fault."

"Shut up."

Ryou chuckled again when the roar of Melvin's motorcycle sounded from below. "Seems like our ride is here. Off to the hospital with you now." He wrapped his arms around Bakura to help him stand but Bakura didn't budge. "C'mon now, I know you can bloody move."

Bakura was silent as Ryou kept trying to move him. He could hear Melvin climbing the fire escape if the loud boot falls were anything to go by. He allowed Ryou to continue the pointless struggle of trying to get him up when he called his name. "Ryou, let me stay like this."

Ryou stopped instantly in surprise at his words. "W-What?" He stared at Bakura with wide eyes.

Bakura felt the words get caught in his throat but he pushed past them. Ryou was usually the one to be all soft and such but he really wanted to feel Ryou's warmth beside him again. "If only for a while longer, let me have your comforting embrace." A small blush had flushed his pale cheeks in his embarrassment. Ryou stopped pulling on him and when Bakura looked up at him, he saw that Ryou had a soft smile on his face.

"Bloody idiot," Ryou replied back just as Melvin leaped onto the roof from the fire escape. "Always."


End file.
